Megido Flame
by Terra Force
Summary: (Chapter 9 up) Arriving at Hong Kong after a bloody fight, Ayane encounters a tournament participant she recognises.
1. Chapter 1: Returned Memories

Chapter 1: Returned Memories

Hi. This is my first fanfic, please read and review. Suggestions on how to improve my story will be most welcome. No flames please

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Donovan stepped into the secret underground laboratory of DOATEC's Anti- Douglas faction Headquarters. The scientists were too busy tending to their tasks and assignments to even notice their own leader when he strolled past them, shifting his eyes repeatedly to check on their progress. At the corner of the wall stood a creature in a giant tube filled with bright green liquid. He had the head, wings and the tail that of a dragon's, and the body of a large, familiar-looking person. In front of the tube, a label read "project: MEGIDO."

Donovan stared through his glasses longingly at his brand-new specimen for the next tournament that will be held... soon. His frown gradually faded to be replaced with a malicious grin, satisfied at what DOATEC has in store for the contestants of the DOA tournament. After a moment of deep planning, he turned and walked away.

Megido would be a worthy opponent for the tournament's participant... probably too worthy to even be defeated by a mere human.

_A fight broke out when the ninjas were confronted by a troop of soldiers with their latest high tech weaponry. They stood still, careful not to make any slight movement when all of a sudden, a reckless ninja dashed forward, unsheathing his sword from his scabbard and charging straight at his enemies with the blade of his sword directed towards the soldiers. A flash of light gleamed from one of the high-tech rifles in response to the attack and unleashed a powerful laser beam which made its way right through the ninja's chest. _

In fury, the rest of the ninjas began to charge too, vowing to avenge their comrade's death. Some of them collapsed shortly in the same way the first one did, the more fortunate ones made their way far enough to attack their enemies, but they have to face death soon after that anyway. However, soon after the ninjas thought they had outnumbered their assailants, recruits came. One by one, they leapt from the military vans and took over the first line of defense, which the ninjas have destroyed. The battle continued obviously leading to the ninjas' fall.

In the midst of the intense battle, a large, tall man came running to join the fight alongside the ninjas, with a young teenage girl in tow. He was soon halted by a ninja who was in an attempt to defend him, not knowing that within a split second he was shot too. Only the man and the youngster remained then. One of the soldiers grabbed the girl by her neck pointed his gun towards her forehead while waiting for the rest to force the man into the van. Before they left, the soldier pulled the trigger of his gun before knowing that it had overheated during the intense fight and it no longer functioned properly. Unable to overcome his frustration, he knocked the gun against the girl's head. She blacked out instantly. The soldiers left, leaving the lone girl lying amidst the result of the destruction.

Ayane woke up with a start. Cold sweat trickled from her forehead down to her neck, she was breathing heavily. She then realized it was merely a nightmare only which it had happened to her before. She recalled of how her most beloved father, Genra, was taken away, never to be seen ever again, and how the Mugen-Tenshin Hajinmon clan was massacred by the thugs from DOATEC. Trying to put her pain aside, she stood and walked out of her room in the Mugen-Tenshin Tenjinmon school. She sat at the backyard looking into the dawn sky, the stars seemed to have joined together to form the outline of Genra's fatherly face. At the memory of Genra's burnt body, her heart almost broke into pieces. A tear flowed down her right eye the same way it did when she watched the death of her mutated father whom she killed with her bare hands.

Ayane sat there placing her elbow on her legs and her chin on the palm of her hand, still pondering over the situation when she sensed movement behind her. Ayane turned her head slightly and shifted her eyes only to notice the bare outline of a figure peeping into the backyard.

"No use hiding, my dear brother. You know you would never fail to produce sound even when sneaking around like this." She said calmly.

"..." Hayate attempted to answer in his defense but couldn't think of any, so he changed the subject, "Why are you up this early?"

"Couldn't sleep."

"What's troubling you?"

"None of your business." Ayane broke the query. She stood up and walked away.

"Wait! Where are you going!" Hayate called out as he watched her walk away. No answer. Soon she was out of sight, traveling into the woods.

Ayane took a few steps before finally arriving at her destination, her old school. She looked at the charred building with deep remorse. The roof tiles were out of shape. Doors hanged from the staircase handles. Targets for shuriken throwing were burnt to merely a heap of ash. Corpses and skeletons of Ayane's comrades lay sprawled on the ground and gave out a foul smell, but it didn't matter to Ayane. Nothing could ever be worse than the pain she had deep inside.

Ayane stepped into Genra's quarters and searched for his closet. She slid the drawer but it broke and fell to the ground due to age. She removed the photograph of Genra and herself. It was taken when Genra just after she first wore her purple bandanna, which she inherited from Genra right when he adopted her. She ransacked the closet more and found a rolled-up script of all the ninja techniques and spells to be taught to Genra's students.

She glanced through the list of ninja moves. She had learnt everything that is in the list. She then looked at the one on how to disappear. She almost forgot how to do it as she had not used that technique for a long time. She memorized the explanation briefly and moved on to look at the spells she had learnt. She hadn't learnt quite a number at the last few because of Genra's captivity with DOATEC. After taking a quick look at them, Ayane rolled the script up to be brought along with her on the way back, including the old photograph.

As she was about to leave, Ayane took one last look at her school before turning away to walk back. By that time, the sun had already risen high up in the sky.


	2. Chapter 2: The Perfect Creation

Chapter 2 : The Perfect Creation

Thanks for the reviews, I appreciate it.

Metal Overload - it's not necessary for you to tell me, I knew you were a fan of Ayane ages ago. You are Jamo in the Tecmo forums, right?

* * *

"What took you so long! Where did you go?" Hayate came out with a mouthful of questions at Ayane's arrival back at the Tenjinmon School.

"Shut up!" Ayane retorted rudely, "I have already told you, haven't I, that it's none of your business!" She said, her voice rising. She went back to her room and slammed the door shut. Just then, the door next to hers creaked open and Kasumi emerged, sleepy-eyed.

"What was that noise?" she asked, still half-asleep in her nightgown.

"Ayane. Out of her mind as usual." Hayate gave an unusually dull and unworried tone, "Oh yeah, by the way, since you are already awake, you don't mind taking care of this place for a while, right?" he asked pleadingly.

"For what?"

"I heard that the fourth DOA tournament is finally arriving and the committee has something new and obviously more challenging for us competitors. So I'll be heading to town to check the situation, see ya!" he grabbed some money and set off. Kasumi gave a deep sigh.

Soon he arrived at the nearest bookstore. He sauntered in and drew the newspaper from a nearby rack. He paid for it at the counter and exited the store. As he walked, he took a quick look at the hideous picture of a dragon-faced creature. It bewildered him such that he almost dropped his jaw. Hayate then shifted his glance to the newspaper headline at the top of the front page.

"DOATEC UNLEASHES NEW SUPERHUMAN PROJECT SPECIMEN, DONOVAN'S BEST EVER CREATION IN HISTORY"

"Wow... great... this should be interesting..." he sighed as he traveled a safe distance out of anyone's sight before vanishing into thin dust.

88888888888

"Hey, let me take a look at that." Kasumi went up to Hayate when he was back.

"Ayane, come out and see what I've got here!" Hayate called out as soon as he laid the newspaper on the table. Ayane came strolling from her room and stood beside Hayate and Kasumi.

"This thing sure looks gruesome. Who knows it may simply destroy the whole battle ring." Kasumi winced with distaste.

"You'd better hope it would. It'll be interesting to watch Donovan panic once in a while." Ayane taunted with a grin. However, that grin didn't last long for her.

_"Part of it looks familiar..."_ Ayane thought silently

"'It is said that Donovan mixed the head of a crocodile..." Hayate read the article out loud.

_"Is that what I think it is?" _

"'...the whiskers of a lobster..."

_"Is it ...?"  
_  
"'...horns of a rhino and a goat ..."

_"!"  
_  
"'...wings of a bat ..."

_"Huh! It can't be...! No way!"  
_  
"'And the body of the previous specimen," Hayate's expression changed drastically to serious, "Omega, together in his brand-new project specimen. He had waited for a long period of time, waiting for this horrifying creature, as commented by most reporters, to be born. Such a complicated combination would make Megido a perfect soldier. Donovan also reported that the more fearsome it looks the better. He has even allowed a two-on-one battle against Megido as this won't be just an ordinary battle...' oh, I can't read this any longer..." Hayate was overwhelmed with disgust and fear at the same time. His words seemed to be stuck in his throat.

"He's insane."said Kasumi.

As he shifted his gaze away from the newspaper, to his surprise and utter dismay, he noticed a pool of tears gathering in Ayane's deep amber eyes, threatening to flow down anytime. Ayane was shivering uncontrollably and her fists were clenched tight, face tightened and eyes ablaze.

"What happened? Are you alright?" Hayate asked her when tears finally made its way down Ayane's cheek.

"This... this..."Ayane was still shivering, "this is unforgivable..." she muttered through gritted teeth, "that mad scientist had gone too far. And worst of all, he turned my father into an animal. Not just an animal, a creature with looks so horrifying. He has used Genra as his weapon... twice. Donovan, you'll have it... you'll have revenge from me, I swear about that!" Her eyes narrowed and it felt as though they would burn right through her.

"Ayane, calm down, Donovan couldn't possibly give up that easy, I know he's being outrageous but Genra's already dead, please don't feel sad anymore." Hayate tried to console her.

"He sure has enough confidence to allow a 2 on 1 battle on it, it must be overloaded with power." Kasumi finally commented after watching Ayane's response.

Just then, Hayabusa appeared out of nowhere, littering the floor with dust and leaves.

"Here, letters for all of you... and me." He handed three of the envelopes to them and immediately tore his open. It read: As past participants of the previous Dead or Alive Tournament, DOATEC welcomes and invites you to participate in the upcoming Dead or Alive 4 Tournament held within a few days. If you are keen on participating again, please fill in your particulars for registration and send the form to the given address.

"I'll never miss one of these." Hayate reached for a pen.

"Count me in." Kasumi smiled at her brother.

"Hey, me too." Ryu said dully.

"I can never forgive myself if I don't win." Ayane sighed heavily and grabbed her form to register. Once the letters were posted, they went to Hayate's room and sat down. Usually, they did this whenever they felt they had to discuss about something, although Kasumi and Ayane never said a word to each other before. This made Hayate deeply concerned.

"So, I suggest we form tag teams for the tournament, what d'you say?" Hayate suggested.

"..." Ayane and Kasumi seemed to be dumb for a moment.

"Ryu, why don't you join up with Kasumi? Leave Ayane to me." Hayate requested when everyone refused to answer. Kasumi and Hayabusa faced each other. Her amber eyes met with Ryu's emerald green ones. He could somehow sense the strong desire she had not wanted to be Ayane's rival. Feeling quizzical, he then rested his eyes on another pair of amber eyes. Through Ayane's usually vicious glare, he could see anger, hatred, as well as sorrow and intense pain.

_"Ayane would forever remain as mysterious as she is as long as I know. She must be suffering from all the heavy losses she had."_ Hayabusa inferred on what he had seen through her eyes.

He snapped out of his dreamy gaze when a kunai pierced through the door of Hayate's room. In the blink of an eye, Hayate caught it with his fingers before it touched his neck. Without hesitating, he removed the note attached to it. It read: Hahaa! Take a look outside, stinko! (If you're still alive)

"We've got company..." Hayate crushed the note in her hand and stood up.


	3. Chapter 3: Mass conflict

> Chapter 3 : Mass Conflict

Metal Overload - (reply to email) I am an Ayane fan, no way am I writing a fanfic without her in it.

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As soon as Ayane opened the door, Hayate's eyes widened in shock and began rubbing his eyes.  
  
"Are my eyes fooling me?! How many sisters do I have?!" Hayate exclaimed when he saw a dozen Kasumi and Ein clones waiting outside the school, 6 of the same type.  
  
"They are clones, stupid. But I guess you forgot all about it when they erased the hell out of your mind." Hayabusa pushed his friend's head with his finger.  
  
"What is Donovan up to now?" Ayane muttered to herself under her breath, switching to his fighting stance, everyone did the same, preparing for a 4 on 12 battle. When they were about to strike, ninjas clad in white filled in.  
  
"Master Hayate," one of them bowed curtly and greeted Hayate, "allow us to assist you in battle."  
  
"No, don't do it."  
  
"?"  
  
"This battle is not for all of you to take on, can't you see? They are clones of my sister and me." Hayate replied to the ninja with a worried tone, and then gave them an OK signal.  
  
"Yes, Master Hayate, as you wish then." The ninja responded obediently.  
  
Before Hayate turned back to face his enemies, Ryu had already charged at them, sending out his usual "war cry". The fight broke out soon enough.

"Heheheh ... they do work well, don't they?" Donovan said, pleased with his progress on the clone-making while watching their fight on a monitor screen, "looks like the mini-camera that I've hidden in their registration forms to the tournament showed us their whereabouts." He continued, grinning from ear to ear. The first, as well as the most powerful Kasumi and Ein clones were sitting by his side.  
  
"Sir, do you think they'll win? I mean, looks like these 4 ninjas are skilled enough to defeat them." The E-clone asked.  
  
"Hmph! I am not giving a damn whether the clones get killed or whatsoever. From the start, I knew they are going to lose anyway. I just want to see how skilled they really are, or even better ..." Donovan stopped when he watched Ayane and Hayabusa fight against his clones, "I think I've seen them somewhere in the tournament before but ... this purple-haired girl sure is fast, and skilled too. Hmm, wait, she just looks too familiar to me." He thought for a moment to regain his memory.  
  
"Oh yeah, she's that girl adopted by Omega. Haha ... like father, like daughter. If I could make a clone out of her, then I would be inevitable!!!" his evil desires began to make its comeback.  
  
Donovan stood up and walked over to his new project. He gazed at the half-completed specimen. Its whiskers were swaying in the liquid and its eyes were still black and blank. 2 pairs of wings were emerging from its back and 3 horns, 2 on both sides of its head and 1 at the front were also beginning to appear. Below the tube, there was a small screen which showed information on the creature.  
  
STATUS : MATURING

TIME REMAINING : APPROX. 4 DAYS

PROGRESS : [=========================----] (reaching completion)  
  
"The time will soon come. The most powerful being of all creation, will soon be born." Donovan spoke in a quiet voice.

Most of the attacks were successful in knocking out one or two clones. However, when they advanced to knock the others out, the downed would soon regain consciousness, this happened many times. So as not to spend energy, Hayate changed his strategy and gave out a command, "fall back!" the rest obeyed and flipped backwards. Hayate then gave a you-know-what-to-do look. Everyone nodded in understanding. Ryu and Hayate unsheathed their swords, Kasumi pulled out her short katana from her back and Ayane pulled out her ... you should know what it is. (I don't know how to describe it) 0.o  
  
"What is that in your hand?" Hayabusa asked quizzically.  
  
Ayane held the object tight in her hands. Two purple blades flared from the tips of the sword. His question had been answered without any word. Weapons drawn, the 4 of them were ready to fight once again. Hayabusa held his katana high above his shoulder, blade facing his enemies. Hayate had the blade of his sword point down to the floor. Kasumi held hers in front of her in a defending position while Ayane held hers behind herself, ready to slash anytime.  
  
"The battle begins..." Ayane said, charging towards the clones, spinning her father's saber as she ran. The Kasumi clones brandished their short blades quite similar to the original's. The Ein clones held up long stick in their hands.  
  
"I've never remembered practicing with sticks when I was training in the dojo for karate ..." Hayate recalled. The 4 of them seemed as though they were outnumbered when the K-clones started flinging their shurikens everywhere. Ayane was having a hard time deflecting the shurikens with her weapon, so were the others. The rest of the ninjas watching from the school watched in horror as they saw the ruckus being made. They couldn't make out their faces. One of them was about to stand up to help when he was stopped by a fellow ninja.  
  
"No, don't go forward, you might injure yourself, you might also mistake Master Hayate and his sister for a clone. Besides, if you go in there to help, it would mean disobeying Hayate." He informed. Meanwhile, Kasumi, Ryu and Hayate were busy defending against the E-clones' damaging blows. One of the K-clones vanished leaving sakura petals floating in the air, which Ayane never noticed. The K-clone reappeared behind Ayane as fast as she had disappeared. She gave her one last shuriken a fatal throw towards Ayane's head. Ayane neither realized nor sensed the danger coming towards her at wind's speed.  
  
"CLANG!!!" Ayane never knew what happened. She turned as she heard the sound coming from her back. All she saw Kasumi's back facing her. A piece of sakura petal landed on Ayane's shoulder. Kasumi was holding her dagger tight in her hands and panting heavily and perspiring profusely. Ayane looked on the ground only to see petals and ... a shuriken.  
  
Then it dawned on her that she was saved by her own sister.  
  
"Kasumi ..." Ayane whispered softly to her sister, she was totally astounded at this moment. The rest of the K-clones seemed to freeze too. This was the first time in ages she called Kasumi by her name. Kasumi, too, finally braved herself in giving a smile in return.  
  
"Hmph! You've just saved a neck. Pity it's wasted!" the Kasumi clone who attempted to kill Ayane sneered. After she finished her last sentence, the rest of the K-clones leapt and flipped forward, landing in their positions. By now, Kasumi and Ayane were already surrounded.  
  
"I have failed to kill one, but I'll kill both of you in return for that loss." The same K-clone said to Ayane and Kasumi in sheer determination.  
  
"Oh no ... Kasumi, Ayane ... urgh!!" just as Hayabusa was calling out to them, a stick hit with such force it nearly broke his back. Hayate seized the opportunity to chop the stick with his sword, followed by a murderous stab through the E-clone's chest. Hayate defended his friend while he got to his feet. So far, 4 E-clones were killed, while none of the K-clones were taken down. The remaining E-clones were easy to handle. They swung their sticks but Hayate and Ryu jumped over and landed behind the enemy. Hayate did a swift sweep-kick and Hayabusa finished his with a three-fold kick. With the clones on the ground, Hayate and Ryu stabbed through them and into the ground. The E-clones were completely eliminated.  
  
Ayane and Kasumi were focused as the circle of the K-clones closed in on them. When they charged, both of them flipped high into the air, landed a clone's shoulder each and kicked them by the cheeks. The 2 of them were thrown off their feet. Ryu and Hayate came over to join the fight. Ayane spun around in different directions and flinging her saber as she went, she targeted with perfect accuracy on the enemy. Any ordinary person who would want to try to escape that attack would have to think twice before even stepping into the battle. even Kasumi, Ryu and Hayate have to keep a distance away from her while dealing with the rest of the clones. Ayane managed to slit 2 of the K-clones on their throat. It happened so quickly the clones never realised there was a cut in their throat until they felt the stinging pain about a second later. It killed them instantly.  
  
The K-clones now sensed the danger that was befalling them when they saw their numbers depleting. They held their daggers and dashed forward, then flipped up in the air to attack from above. Hayate and Ryu held their swords up high to defend their heads. Only Kasumi and Ayane were fast enough to move out of the way, causing the clones to slump onto the ground. still lying there, the clones did a sweep-kick. Kasumi flipped backward but Ayane leapt forward, landing on the clone's back. Since the K-clone could not move under Ayane's feet, she had no other choice but to surrender to death as she felt the stabbing pain on her back done by Ayane's weapon.  
  
The other K-clone stood up all of a sudden and did a high-kick, Kasumi ducked and tripped her. Kasumi caught her by her neck and pushed her against a tree.  
  
"I wouldn't be as cruel as to kill someone with cold blood just like my sister does. But everyone has to live to the fact that there is only one me." Kasumi told the fake with reluctance as she stabbed her heart. She removed her blood-coated dagger from the clone, letting her body slide down the tree, leaving a trail of blood on the trunk.  
  
Meanwhile, Ryu and Hayate were having a hard time dealing with the remaining 2 clones. They seemed to be losing to the latter's speed but fortunately realised they were being assisted when they saw a blade protruding from each of their stomachs. When the blades were removed, the clones dropped dead.  
  
"1-0 for us, but he won't give up that easily." Hayate said under his fatigued breath while tending to his friend's wounds.


	4. Chapter 4: Flashbacks

Chapter 4 : Flashbacks

Enjoy.

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They were back in their room, free from the interruption of the clones, which almost cost them their lives. Nothing seemed to change from the way they are then, except for the hole in the door left by the kunai.  
  
"You could've died if she hadn't saved you, Ayane." Hayate reminded her of what he witnessed at the battle. Ayane thought over again, it was a close shave. She never thought that Kasumi would even care for her safety, but yet it was true. At this Kasumi closed her eyes, daring not to look at the expression on Ayane's face, although she had no idea what she would look like. Ayane lowered her head laden with guilt. As she lifted her head up again, she put in enough courage to speak to her sister, "For now, you can have my gratitude, Kasumi. I thank you." She, too, dared not to watch Kasumi's reaction. Kasumi forced a little smile which Ayane could see from the corner of her eye. Both finally turned to look at each other. For the first time in ages, they looked at each other, two pairs of amber eyes locking.  
  
"Ayane, it would be nice if you two get together again, I really want to put your rivalry to an end. Maybe you should at least think about it." Hayate said with noticeable fear. Ayane could not even think about it, she felt as if everything was a mess. Not knowing what to say or do, she shook her head, stood up and headed for the door.  
  
When Ayane was gone, Hayate looked up at the clock, it was already getting late since they spent much time clearing the mess made from the furious clone battle and especially to treat their own wounds.  
  
"Let's get to bed now, I guess it's time." Hayate dismissed them and went to his room.  
  
Meanwhile, back in Ayane's room, Ayane was clutching her forehead with both hands, ruffling her hair. She had to make a decision, but somehow she just could not focus. When she did, she began to travel her mind back...  
  
"_Aren't you Ayane, Hayate and Kasumi's half-sister? What the hell happened to you?"  
  
"No one cares about that anyway, why do you?"  
  
"I can't just leave out here in the cold, that gash in your arm is really deep, who did this kind of thing to you?"  
  
"If you're asking who did this, he's quite near to me." 7-year-old Ayane replied, gesticulating to the door behind her. Without hesitation, he knocked on the door. And it was answered.  
  
"Well, well. Look who we have here. If it isn't Genra, the big guy, how nice." Ayane's stepfather was just as sarcastic as Ayane herself.  
  
"Yeah, it's me alright!! If it isn't YOU who did this to a small kid like her!" Genra roared at him, pointing at Ayane who was now grasping her arm and closing her eyes tightly.  
  
"This brat injured my daughter, so she should deserve one too!"  
  
"Well, I'm sure she didn't do it on purpose, did she?"  
  
"So what?! Anyway, she's nothing but a product of rape! Because of her, yes her, my wife passed away!!!"  
  
"But that's not her fault, you can't put the blame on Ayane. Her father did it, not her!"  
  
"Shut up! The daughter of a rapist is not allowed in the house, she has been a heavy burden and now I finally get to release it. I already have a good mind to throw her into the streets where she should BELONG!!!"  
  
"I can't belive you...no! She's NOT to belong there. She's going to stay with me and that's final!"  
  
"Fine... do as you please, my man. But I have no business to do with this brat anyway. And now that you have made up your mind in taking her... she's never going to appear at my doorstep ever again, so... GET HER OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!"  
  
"YOU"RE A MONSTER!!!" Just then, footsteps could be heard from within the house.  
  
"What?! No, father, please don't do it, please I beg you...it's not her fault..."Kasumi's voice whined.  
  
"Father... I can't believe what you've just done..." Hayate's voice could also be heard.  
  
"You two get to your rooms. This is none of your business!"  
  
"AYANE!" Kasumi ran to the doorstep looking at Ayane, teary-eyed,"Ayane, please, I don't want you to leave." Though Kasumi was feeling sympathetic towards her half-sister, it was nothing but too late. Ayane's once friendly eyes had mutated into a pair of menacing ones. That was exactly when her immense hatred had filled her heart. She glared viciously at her sister.  
  
"Look at that... look at her eyes, see how evil she is, Genra?" Ayane's father grinned widely.  
  
"No, she's not evil. You are!" By this moment, Kasumi and Hayate had already been shoved into the house and there was a deafening slam. Genra lifted Ayane from the snow-piled ground and carried her in his arms. Ayane was clutching her arm even tighter so as not to let the winter wind freeze her wound. Blood was now seeping from in between her fingers. On seeing how badly cut she was, Genra quickened his pace towards the Mugen-Tenshin Hajinmon School.  
  
"There, that should do it." Genra placed Ayane on his lap while sitting on an armchair, a bandage was wrapped around her arm, "Okay, let me introduce myself, my name is Genra, leader of the Mugen-Tenshin Hajinmon clan."  
  
"Huh? What's that?"  
  
"I'll explain that some other time."  
  
"Genra-san, thank you for your kindness."  
  
"Hehehe, no need for the formalities. From mow on, you will call me 'father', because now you're my daughter, Ayane. And I love you." He kissed Ayane on her cheek. She gazed up at him for a moment and hugged him in return.  
  
"Oh... you, boy, come here." Genra called out to a passing ninja who was about 9 years of age.  
  
"Yes, master."  
  
"Bring me a camera, we've got a new guest." Ordered Genra. The ninja looked surprised to see Ayane, but he set off to get a camera. When he got back, he stopped and stared at Ayane, "Hello there, you're cute and uh... welcome to the school." Ayane smiled at him. While he was busy setting up the camera on its stand, Genra pulled out a dark purple bandanna which he had been wearing. As the boy stood behind the camera covering himself under a piece of black cloth, Genra fitted the bandanna on Ayane's head and the camera flashed._ (-End flashback)  
  
Ayane picked up the photograph which had been taken at that time and hardly ever took her eyes off it for a long time. She touched Genra's face with her forefinger, remembering all of his kindness and care for her. She then pulled out her bandanna from her hand and clenched it tight in her hands, preserving the memory for as long as she lived.  
  
Kasumi sat hunched on her bed, not willing to sleep yet, while she thought...  
  
_She fell and slumped to the icy ground after falling from a cliff. Ayane landed beside her. Kasumi got up as quick as she possibly could regardless of the pain she was feeling. She leapt up and planned to attack her sister from above but Ayane grabbed her arm and spin-kicked her with such force she was thrown off many, many feet away. Kasumi landed and slid on the ice before coming to a stop. She could barely hear Ayane chanting a weird incantation and sensed the danger that was going to befall her. She attempted in vain to get up but she had to do it with so much difficulty that before she could even get up on her feet properly, she was again taken down to the floor this time with a massive force that hit her. Kasumi felt limp and weak she hardly had the energy to move an inch, a surge of burning pain overwhelmed her and she was weakened even further, she thought she was going to die very soon when she saw the blurry image of her half-sister lifting a dagger high above her head, prepared to end her sister's life once and for all. Ayane grinned in satisfaction for the victory she had made. This was her chance, the opportunity was finally here. Ayane had long wanted to assassinate Kasumi and now here she was, preparing herself to face death in her eyes. _

_From where she lay, Kasumi stared at the blade above her, glinting in the light. Her gaze travelled down to the sharp edge of the blade, which looked as though it was anxious to pierce itself through human flesh, desiring to create pain. Kasumi closed her eyes and a tear ran down her face as she waited for the blade to remove her from this world. However, before Ayane could even bring down her arm, pain streaked through her head and she stopped. The headache gradually grew more intense, causing Ayane to stagger a few steps backward before dropping her dagger. Ayane grabbed her head and screamed in pain. She heard voices.  
  
"NOOO!! AAAARGH!!" She groaned as her head contracted with unimaginable pain. The voice speaking to her, reminding that Kasumi was her sister, was nothing else but her own conscience. "Hrrh... grrrh... GO AWAY!!! AND NEVER APPEAR AGAIN!!!" Ayane shouted at her sister with such anger that no one has ever seen before. Kasumi crawled to Ayane and knelt by her side, she placed her hand on Ayane's shoulder, "Are you... alright?"  
  
Ayane jerked Kasumi's arm away and faced her, eyes narrowing.  
  
"Stay out of this, jerk! Stay OUT!!" Ayane glowered at her sister. Kasumi could not bear the sight of Ayane like this, she had the intention to help her again when Ayane began to scream and collapse to the ground, fighting with the pain conscience had given her, but Kasumi had no choice as Ayane kept turning down her offer to help.  
  
Leaving Ayane there suffering and in pain, Kasumi reluctantly vanished herself out of sight._

_She had won the fight in this way._(-End flashback-)  
  
Kasumi stared at the wall in the direction of Ayane's room, a grieved expression written on her face. Ayane had suffered innumerable losses, like the death of her foster father, let alone sparing the sister whom she had always hated. A strong feeling of sympathy welled up in her, she had constantly wished they could get along since the day her father threw her out of the house...


	5. Chapter 5: Getting prepared

Chapter 5 : Getting prepared

Sorry I haven't updated this for a damn long time. Anyway, just read and enjoy. Remeber to review.

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"My apologies for calling you at 12 midnight, but I want this meeting private and confidential."

"If it means having a secret task at hand, do as you please."

"Very well, let's get this straight. Participation for the tournament has been confirmed and we've received information that the daughter of Fame Douglas is up for the challenge again."

"Interesting..."

"I suppose you've got a clue what it's all about, your first objective of this mission is to participate again in this tournament and keep an eye on Helena. I strictly prohibit her interference in my plans."

"Understood"

"Next thing, these 2 contestants who calls themselves Ayane and Ryu Hayabusa are participating again, which arouses my interest."

"What are you planning to do, sir?"

"Clone them, of course."

"But sir, it's against the rules to do something like that while in the match. Do you suppose I do it before the tournament begins?"

"No, you can't do it on your own, they'll take you down in no time, considering they are one of the most skilled ninjas. I know it's a big risk but you'll do it if they lose a fight. I'll arrange so that you'll be the last person they're gonna fight against, if the previous opponents succeed in defeating them, you'll seize them whilst they are weak or probably unconscious. However, should some circumstances arouse that they fail to do so, you'll handle the task of beating them up. You're my best bet, Christie, and I'm counting on you alone."

"Will do. Thank you, sir."

"Your objective will be considered accomplished if you capture either one of them, because they may not be teaming up. However, a bonus shall await you if you could bring me back both, alive."

Donovan stood up from his seat and strolled lazily towards the window. He gazed up to the dark moonlit sky, an evil grin written across his face. If he could get his hands on Ayane, Hayabusa or even better... both, he could power up his already powerful army of high-skilled ninja clones to make it invincible. He snapped out of his dream when a shadow looming over the window sill appeared before his very eyes. In panic, he slid the window open and stuck his head his head out of the skyscraper. There, next to his window on the sill itself, stood a ninja clad in complete black. 2 katanas hung at both sides of his waist and, to Donovan's surprise, another 2 hung crossed on his back. The ninja jerked his head sideways to meet Donovan's. While they were face to face, the intruder gave him a dirty look, then leapt from the sill and flipped forward, heading straight down. When Donovan stared down to face a scenery 90 feet below, the spy had disappeared.

"Is there anything wrong, sir?"

"It's an intruder! He listened to our entire conversation!"

"That's impossible... how could he escape our security?"

"That shall remain unanswered for now. Christie, come back here tomorrow and order the men to install heat sensors on every side of the exterior part of this building and connect it to the main alarm, I hate it when this happens... security code would be switched from yellow to red. I just hope he doesn't have any links to our enemies."

"Yes, sir"

"All right then, you're dismissed. Remember, capture any of the 2 whom you think is in a worse condition. Make sure you succeed! If you're confused in choosing, then choose ................. Ayane," he whispered to her in a menacing tone, "understood?"

"Loud and clear"

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Ayane opened her and sat up to look at the clock, through the darkness, she could make out 5 a.m.

"_Perfect timing" _she thought quietly. Without making the slightest bit of noise, she crept out of her room, her footsteps emitting not a single sound. She left a note at Hayate's door and out into the wilderness she went. She carried her father's sword and the scroll of magic techniques she found earlier along with her. Once again, she arrived at her old, long-destroyed school. She stepped up on to the backyard and rolled open her scroll. She held out her right hand and read the contents of the scroll carefully...

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"Out for the whole morning? Dunno what she's up to now." Hayate sighed to himself as he walked to his door. It was half past six at dawn. Hayate dragged his feet lazily outside to take a breather, but not long later, he stared in the direction leading to the Hajinmon School. Out there he heard funny noises and light flashing frequently. A short while later, Kasumi came out and stood by his side.

"What are you looking at?"

"That. Probably it's Ayane, but I wonder what she's up to."

"No clue, maybe she's ..."

Her speech was interrupted by a sudden, ear-crushing blast that should have made both siblings jump.

"Wow... what was that?" Hayabusa rushed out of his room.

"C'mon, let's check it out." Hayate ordered the two to follow him. Hayate hurried through the wilderness at full speed, pushing through the tall grass, with Kasumi and Ryu in tow. They arrived at the school, only to see Ayane lying there, trying in vain to get up from where she lay, but it seemed as though all her energy had been drained away from her.

"What happened? Are you alright?" Hayate knelt beside Ayane and helped her up. Her face was partly burnt. Her hand, especially her right was also burnt and sore from her training. She was coughing real badly and could not even open her eyes properly. Hayabusa scanned through her injuries for a few seconds and thought for a moment, and then he turned to face Hayate, "Don't worry about her, Hayate. She'll be able to recover in a short while. We'll just help her back and let her rest."

"All right, as you say then, Ryu, if you're sure about it."

Ayane staggered a few steps forward before stumbling again. Before she hit the ground, she felt a hand holding on to her body in mid-air, moving her to a shoulder to lend her support. Ayane turned to her side and could barely make out a blurry image of her sister. Ayane was again surprised and realised for a second time that Kasumi had helped her again. Hayate smiled at his friend and he smiled back, the both of them had never seen Ayane and Kasumi like this before.

When they arrived back in the Tenjinmon School, Kasumi released her sister and let her rest in her room.

"The effect of the spell should probably wear off in a few minutes," Hayabusa explained, "Rest, Ayane. We'll go on training without you for now. You can join us later." Ryu and Hayate left the room, only Kasumi remained. She signaled to her brother before he closed the door.

"What do you want with me?" Ayane muttered in a low voice with her head still down. Kasumi faced her sitting at the corner of the small room. Her voice was slightly hoarse. She sat by Ayane's side.

"You sure you're alright? That doesn't look like a normal injury." Kasumi asked her with eyes full of concern towards the lavender-haired girl. She stared at her for a moment, then spoke, "Master Ryu said it, didn't he? The effect will wear off very soon. There's nothing serious about it." Ayane paused for a couple of seconds before she continued, "This doesn't concern you. There's the door, use it."

Kasumi stood up, "If you don't mind, Ayane, we'll spar later. It's been quite a while we haven't fought." Ayane closed her eyes, lowered her head, and nodded. With that, Kasumi left.

"Ryu, are you sure she doesn't need any help? She looks badly injured to me." Hayate asked his best friend while training his band of ninjas. He certainly saw those burn marks as a threat.

"I said don't worry, Hayate, you'll see what I mean later... see, there she is right now."

"Huh? She looks... clean."

"See what I told you? You should wise up, buddy. But I understand that it would be difficult because you lost your memory. Damn that DOATEC..."

Ayane headed straight to the training room where, as what she had definitely expected, Kasumi was sitting there awaiting her arrival. She suddenly looked up, surprised at how fast Ayane had recuperated. They kept a distance away from each other and bowed curtly before preparing their stance.

"You ready?" Ayane said.

"Let's not make it too harsh."

Ayane charged forward, crouched and did a sweep-kick. Kasumi leapt behind Ayane and attacked but she dodged sideways. She rolled towards Kasumi and kicked, feet first into the air. Kasumi jerked her head backward, missing the attack. She held Ayane's arm and swung her to the front. She was behind Ayane now. Using this as an advantage, Kasumi threw a punch, but realized that she had failed when Ayane turned at wind's speed to grab her sister's fist. She jumped and slammed the back of Kasumi's head with her foot, sending her crashing to the ground a short distance away. Kasumi sat back up and held her head.

"Sorry about that. Was it painful?"

"You're as fast as ever."

"You too" Ayane replied, reaching out her hand towards Kasumi. She gazed at the hand and then looked at her face written with not a single expression. She smiled before allowing Ayane to help her up. They stepped back from each other and bowed again. Kasumi turned to find Hayate and Ryu , who had watched the whole scene, standing by the doorway of the room.

"I guess you have to keep up, Kasumi. You're her elder sister, you know." Hayate quipped.

"It's you who have to keep up, Hayate. Besides, you're older than the both of us here." Ayane countered his speech, a look of dissatisfaction on her face.

"Okay, let's have a quick round then." Hayate challenged Ayane, intending to prove his prowess that she had just offended.

"Fine you asked for it." Ayane hid both her hands behind her and cracked her knuckles.

"_He's getting hurt." _Ryu thought, shaking his head.


	6. Chapter 6: 3 Survivors

Chapter 6 : 3 Survivors

thanks for the review Coldheartlessnight, reviews mean a lot to me. Enjoy this chapter and pls review.

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"Oh no... argh! Okay, you can stop now." Hayate whimpered weakly. He was lying face down on the floor, unable to move, while Ayane was kneeling on one knee placed against Hayate's back. She was twisting his arm before she stopped.

"All right, Ayane, you win this time. I suggest you two team up in the tournament, would it be fine with you?" Hayate looked up at them from the floor, seeing that Kasumi was smiling at him, which he assumed approval to his suggestion.

"Sure. Okay, Hayate. But don't disgrace yourself in front of Master Ryu, alright?" Though Ayane's anger has faded a little, sarcasm stayed in her voice. Hayate gave her an uneasy look, unsure whether she was right about him. Kasumi had always encouraged him to become stronger, to be even stronger than what he used to be before his disappearance. At the thought of this, he began to understand why Ayane had despised DOATEC. Both his sisters wanted him to be more powerful so that he can carry burden of the clan on his own shoulders, and to regain self-respect. Ayane had always been sarcastic, but deep inside he knew what she desired him to be like. In fact, she was actually trying to raise his determination and to encourage him to be stronger like what Kasumi wanted, so that he won't ever have to take in insults like what Ayane just did to him. These insults were just to motivate him.

"Nii-san, what's wrong?" Kasumi asked, seeing that her brother was hanging his head low, and he looked sad.

"Uhm... nothing. I just want to know what I was like before I was captured."

"Don't feel that way, Hayate, it's not your fault. Since that day when I became a runaway, all I wanted was you, regardless of whether you like me or not. It didn't even matter whether you wanted to kill me or didn't even recognize me. Even if looking for you meant running away to my death, I would do it rather do it than live to regret for the rest of my life. I just wanted to see you for that one last time. Nii-san, I can't express how grateful I am that you have accepted me back into the clan." Kasumi confessed, "Please understand, we're not pressurizing you to be better in a flash, just take your time, Hayate, and work hard."

"Hayate, you weren't that arrogant or cocky at that time like you were in the last tournament because you knew you were leader of this clan, neither were you acting like a coward and feared even your siblings or your friends, when you found out the truth about us. Before the day you were gone, you were bold, courageous and responsible, as well as a caring brother of your two sisters here and a good friend of me. I understand what DOATEC had done to you, you have to start life once over again and try to become a worthy leader for the clan. Nevertheless, you have been good enough for yourself. You are the heir of the leaders, therefore, prove yourself to your enemies and the rest of the clan and show them what you're really made of." Hayabusa said.

"He's right, Hayate. You are what you are. You're not anybody else. Don't ever try to be someone you're not, not even your past. But you must become stronger, that you'll be able to survive even if we're gone. Train hard." These last words came from Ayane, who was expressionless as usual.

"I will, Ayane. Thank you everyone."

Ayane closed her eyes and nodded slowly. Hayate knew from the start that his half-sister was hard to understand at times. She tends to hide her personal emotions, but that did not mean that she could not be understood, for he knew who understands her the most, and the one who saw her as his most prized treasure, which is none other than Genra.

Meanwhile, back in the same store where Hayate bought the newspaper on Megido, the ninja who spied Donovan was there, newspaper in hand, stranded in a long, snake-like queue. Though it was a small and humble shop, this time it attracted more customers than ever expected. The owner of this shop, which provided items for sale, as well as a service centre for mobile phones, had gone bankrupt and needed money badly, he had no choice but to lower the prices to sell more quickly. Standing on front of the ninja-in-disguise, also stranded in the long queue, was an impatient man garbed neatly in a black suit with a red tie. His curses could be heard as he spoke loudly on his mobile phone, which suggested that it needed a little repair.

"What do freaking think? Standing in this freaking long queue when I need this freaking phone repaired in a damn freaking hurry! And this freaking, old shop owner can't even move faster! He's absolutely delaying the whole freaking queue! How I freaking wish I could just blast his freaking head..."

Just then he felt an hand hit him in the elbow, causing his mobile phone to slip from his grasp and land on the floor, breaking into pieces.

"What the... hey! What do you freaking think you're DOING?!" the man turned and glared dangerously at the ninja, his thick eyebrows furrowing with frustration.

Despite the man's anger and his looks, the ninja remained calm and consoled.

"... freaking accident."

"Well, I ought to remove the freaking hell out of you then!" the infuriated man lifted up his arms; he felt his patience gradually leaving him. He struck the ninja but his arm was caught in mid-air by yet another hand. The ninja held on to the man's arm with one hand and with his free hand, he turned the man around to make him face the counter. Until then did the madman realize what he had done. The queue in front of him was already gone. He was absolutely the one delaying everybody. The cashier just stared blankly at the man.

"Fine, whatever." He left the queue and stormed out through the door. The ninja walked forward and laid down the newspaper, along with the money, on the counter's desk.

Ayane woke up the next morning this time at about 3 a.m. She brought with her again the scroll and set off into the darkness outside. As she stepped out into the woods, she noticed a weak gleam of light emanating from a distance, what came to her mind first were spies sent from DOATEC, but she could not be sure just yet. When she heard someone speaking from that spot, Ayane made a quiet sprint towards them and ran up a nearby tree and sat on a branch.

"See that? You should know why I had resented him since the beginning." It was the ninja again. He was speaking to a friend and had his 4 katanas laid on the ground. he was a tall ,and a bit lanky, man. He had short hair like most men should have. The other ninja was about Ayane's height, though a little shorter, and he appeared stocky. He had shoulder-length hair tied back in a tiny ponytail.

"He's gone haywire!" the stocky lad exclaimed, staring down at the newspaper.

"It's sad though, I'm sure Ayane has seen it. Well, you can imagine just how she feels..." the tall ninja said gloomily. This time, his friend's eyes widened.

"What you mean... she's..." he stuttered.

"Yes. She's alive... and she's here."

"Huh?! What the... where?!"

"Don't worry, she's quite close to you." The taller man gestured with his finger up in front of him.

The stocky ninja turned behind him and looked up to a tree. He stared at the figure sitting cross-legged on a branch, but the short hair was all too familiar to him. The figure jumped down and landed on the ground noiselessly. The short ninja jumped up in surprise.

"Hi, Ayane. Long time no see." The tall ninja spoke.

"You survived." Ayane said.

"Yeah, we escaped from the battlefield instead of fighting. We know we would lose anyway, so there's no point dying. Then I spotted one of them taking you, I wanted to see what happened but soon enough they saw us. We had no choice but to disappear. From that day, we assumed they shot you dead, until..."

"Until what?"

"Until I heard Donovan mention you."

"You spied him?!"

"Yeah, in Hong Kong, where the their headquarters is situated. I escaped when he noticed me, then both of us secretly boarded a ship to return back here."

"Why didn't you come back to the clan? You know the Tenjinmon sector still exists."

"We can't, the soldiers had been guarding the forest for a long time, because they were in search for us. They didn't want the Tenjinmon clan informed about the incident so that no one would get into their plans. They wanted to make sure no one from the Hajinmon clan survives. We had no way to gain access to the rest of the clan unnoticed, but..."

"... but I survived to tell the truth." Ayane continued.

"You're right." He said, "but in the end, they succeeded. Genra's identity was taken away and turned onto nothing but a mere puppet working for Donovan. Then he was used in some kind of a tournament, and there, he died..."

"... and I won." Ayane interrupted him again.

"What?'

"Yes, I killed him. I entered the tournament 3 times, and for the third time, my main purpose was to put an end to his misery. Although I met Kasumi there, I set aside the thought of killing the runaway, I deliberately disobeyed Hayate's orders to back off. My determination paid off... and now Genra's dead.

"I guess you have to do what's best."

Ayane nodded, "Master Ryu's clan was also destroyed. He has taken his revenge, and now I'm taking mine."

"Ayane, I have a lot to tell you about what I've heard while I spied Donovan, and I think it'll be best if your friends get involved too. But I think it's still too early." The sky was still dark and Ayane grinned. She pulled out the scroll which caught them ny surprise. Ayane led them to her "training grounds" and she rolled open her scroll.


	7. Chapter 7: Birth

Chapter 7: Birth

STATUS: Taking Form

TIME REMAINING: approx. ½ days

Donovan looked at it and turned away. He stepped into a cold room where the temperature was barely above 0 degrees Celsius. He pulled the lid of a safe, which looked more like a black fridge, and reached for a test tube containing reddish-orange liquid. Though it was placed in the cold room for a long time, it remained boiled. Wearing plastic gloves to insulate him against the heat, he carried it with him and headed towards Megido's cylinder. He took hold of the edge of its massive lid and lifted it slightly to allow the solution from the test tube to carry its course into the green liquid in which Megido is submerged in. the solution dissolved slowly and the liquid in the cylinder glowed orange and crimson instead of the usual yellowish-green. Again, Donovan grinned devilishly. That superheated solution was none other than one of his crazy inventions. He gazed up at the creature's face.

Some of his underlings had noticed and informed him that its head did not look one least bit like a crocodile's, its horn at the rear of its head did not look like a goat's. Donovan was not surprised, though. He knew exactly what he had done, he had lied to the reporters who interviewed him. Not even his underdogs knew the exact constituents that made up the complete form of Megido. Long before he began his work on his creation, he had assigned Christie on a mission via e-mail after the 3rd tournament, along with a bodyguard and a scientist to help her along the way, to two places, the long-forgotten cities of Tairon and Dworku. Her objective was simple, she was to extract DNA samples of the red dinosaur-look-alike monstrosities that Rachel the Fiend Hunter and even Ryu Hayabusa the legendary ninja himself had slain 2 years ago. Donovan had intended them at first to travel to the caverns leading to the depths of the Palace of Zarkhan but recently, some miners have accidentally detonated a bomb there and resulted in a cave in. the carcass of the fire dragon which Donovan had targeted was buried under the massive rubble forever. He also wanted the dragon's firepower but since he had the red solution and Omega's magical hands, the problem was solved.

Donovan checked its status one last time, took a quick glance at the monster, and left the laboratory.

Hayate woke at seven and left his room. Upon looking a distance in front of his room, he saw Ayane, along with 2 other ninjas, sitting and chatting among each other. Ayane turned to face her brother, so did the rest. He gaped in disbelief.

"Morning, Hayate. How's the night? Sleep well? Telling from your expression, you don't look quite well."

"Ayane, have you let strangers in?"

She shot him a dirty look, "I presume that was an insult, Hayate. You know well never to aggravate me in the morning, right?"

Then tell me, who the heck are they?"

"These are two of the best ninjas in our clan." Ayane's eyes narrowed even more.

"I've heard you're the new leader of the clan after Genra, Hayate. My name is Etsudo Matsudaira." The taller man stood up and bowed deeply.

"And I'm Kimura Suigetsuro. Pleased to meet you." The stocky ninja did the same. Hayate bowed back and soon, Ryu, followed by Kasumi, joined in. they sat down and Ayane began to take her speech, "Etsudo, what was it that you wanted to say? Now that they're here, you can now share it with us."

Etsudo cleared his throat and started, "Two days ago at 12 midnight, I spied Donovan and listened to what he called a 'private meeting'. And it seemed that both of you, Ayane and Hayabusa, are in danger." Ayane and Ryu looked at each other but kept silent to allow him to continue, "He is sending a white-haired woman named Christie to join a tournament which I guess all of you are participating in. It seems Donovan intends to capture both of you on order to contribute in his clone-making madness. But Christie may not be able to take action unless you lose, to take advantage of your condition, that is. So I suggest you plan on your tag teams and be on your guard. And no matter what, you must not lose."

Hayate mulled over this new piece of information and an idea was brewing in his mind, "Okay, everyone. Here's the plan..."

Back in Donovan's lab, the scientists were once again back to work. Two scientists assigned to study Megido checked on everything making sure it was ready to compete in the tournament.

"Something seems strange here. This is not its usual pattern; it's beginning to make a change. The DNA structure... is showing some kind of ... mutation?" one said to the other.

"Oh no, I think you're right. It's really starting to evolve. Look! Those hands have turned to eagles' claws. That's one evidence. We'd better not tell Donovan, he wouldn't be pleased to hear about this." His partner looked surprised and what he said but tried his best not to panic and keep his composure. He agreed to keep it from their master. Before they could say anything else, their eyes were set on the status monitor screen where they caught sight of something moving. The words shown were flashing repeatedly.

STATUS: Completed

TIME REMAINING: 0, 00 seconds

The duo watched fearfully as Megido's hands twitched and its eyes showing colour. They marveled in sheer awe as the red solution was absorbed into its body, what was left in the cylinder was the yellowish-green liquid. Its body pigment changed too, from dull green scales to crimson. Its eyes glowed a blinding yellow before slamming its palm on the glass cylinder, forming a crack. The scientists snapped out of their dreamy gaze and rushed to push a button to drain the liquid. When it was partially down to Megido's chest, it knocked its fist to the glass, causing the crack to widen more. By the time the water level reached its waist it gave its final blow which broke the glass into numerous pieces. The remaining liquid gushed out and splashed violently onto the floor. The scientists at work backed off as they witnessed what was going on. The creature took in the first breath of air and hopped out of its platform and landed on the floor softly, its body drenched. It shivered and vibrated before spreading its broad wings, releasing more drops of water from its wet body. Megido surveyed its birthplace, the secret underground laboratory of the anti-Douglas faction in DOATEC. After giving the room a thorough scan, it gave a high-pitched roar which made the workers' hairs stand on end. Tomb-like silence filled the air. They cowered as they beheld the sight of the beast.

"Bravo, bravo." A voice broke the silence. It was Donovan, leaning his side against the doorway with arms and legs crossed in a bossy manner, "Such strength. He's even broke the toughest glassware DOATEC's technology has ever manufactured." He had watched everything from behind the scenes. Megido swiftly jerked his head at Donovan's direction aggressively and gave him a low growl. Donovan sauntered in and stood before Megido without further ado.

"_I have injected my own cells into its body, so it should recognize me by now." _Donovan stretched out his hand to Megido and commanded in a low voice, "You shall obey me for I have created you." The monster rested its eyes on Donovan for a moment, then lowered its head and knelt on one knee before him, signaling its obedience. True enough, Megido saw Donovan as nothing but its brother and creator, for they shared the same blood now. Donovan was bursting in pride at the sight of this, then announced to his employees, "My men, I, Victor Donovan, am truly gratified to say that this project has been named... a success." The workers gazed at both their employer and the result of the project specimen, and one by one, they smiled in a self-satisfying way. The room was filled with applause for a few seconds, then the scientists shook hands with each and every other colleagues.

"Celebration's over. Megido, time for your first training." Donovan beckoned it to follow him.

"Yes, master." Megido growled.


	8. Chapter 8: The BreakIn

Chapter 8: The Break-In

Sorry, I've been very slow with my story. Anyway, thanks again Coldheartlessnight for the reviews.

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"Okay, I think it's time we go, we don't have much time left. There's a port somewhere beyond this forest, where the ships come and go to deliver supplies from DOATEC. This time that place might prove useful for our transportation. However, only three ships can stop at a time. It'll be easier if one occupies a ship alone to avoid detection. You three shall go first, we'll catch you up later when the next ships come." Hayate said to Ayane, Etsudo and Kimura "Now go and get ready all that you need in your arsenal. Weapons will be a necessity to deal with that dragon-face. You shall leave tonight."

"Understood" Ayane nodded obediently. They stood up and ran back to their rooms. Ayane stuffed a few clothes, kunai scrolls, her weapons, as well as her technique scroll into a small pack.

At dusk, Etsudo and Kimura entered her room, both dressed in black, "Okay, Ayane. This is it. We're..." Before he could finish his sentence, his attention was driven to a photograph lying at the corner of the room. He picked it up and eyed it for a moment, then smiled, "I remember it well."

"I'm glad you took a good picture back then. You're a professional." Ayane replied while lifting her pack to her left shoulder. She was dressed in her black ninja outfit to blend in the pitch darkness. As they were about to leave, they looked back towards the school and saw Hayate's figure standing in a distance.

"Good luck, you three. We're counting on you out there. See you at Hong Kong!" Hayate called out to them before they stepped into the darkness. _"I have to let them off first. If I were to go first, I may put the next group at risk. Anyway, the Hajinmon practitioners are better trained at stealth, thus their association with darkness. But it is guaranteed that they would make it unnoticed. In a matter of time, the DOATEC soldiers will assault us. Have to be on guard!" _With that in mind, he went to Ryu and Kasumi, "Get ready your weapons and stand prepared. A battle is awaiting..."

"Right"

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The trio crept in like a serpent gliding in the thick bushes and fixed their eyes on the fully-armed guards, observing their every movement as they patrolled DOATEC's hidden port, keeping a close watch on the ships and liners which come and go at regular intervals. Kimura reverted his attention to the watchtower, where the security lights that shone over the vicinity came from. The other two faced in his direction and spotted a fairly large, white structure adjacent to the watchtower, which was obviously the control centre. As the infiltrators drew near, Ayane stepped forward and got herself ready before tearing off at full speed towards the guard stationed at the entrance to the building, her feet emitting not a sound that would betray her presence. The guard that stood there had an expression which showed that he lacked enough sleep to keep his body and mind alert, this came to an advantage. With almost superhuman speed, Ayane slipped behind him and gripped his neck like a vice, almost snapping it. She unsheathed her dagger and drove the wicked blade through his back, puncturing his heart.

The man struggled and tried to make a gagged scream but his strenuous attempts proved futile again and again as Ayane's tight grip was causing him to choke even more. He was weakened and stopped struggling; his body twitched twice and came to a stop. Ayane leaned the now lifeless body against the wall next to the doorway. She glanced at the entrance. The door stood firmly shut and words bore in large capitals NO UNAUTHORIZED PERSONELL were displayed in the middle, in dangerous red print. At the side was a scanner flashing a bright, crimson gleam on the black screen. Ayane snorted at the sight of it, then lifted the corpse's left hand and sliced his thumb off in a cold manner. She placed it on the screen and the light changed from red to green.

"ACCESS GRANTED" came a cool, female voice from the electronic speaker.

"Kimura, in you go," Etsudo pushed his friend forward, urging him to do the job. The stocky ninja obeyed and stepped out.

"Access denied..." another voice came from a distance, but this one sounded more human. Kimura whipped his head to his side only to come face-to-face with a burly man with sunglasses and thick lips, "Who the hell are you?" the man blurted out in a gruff voice.

Kimura seemed to pause for a brief second before he started, "Oh... greetings!!! My name is Kimura Suigetsuro." His face broke into a hearty smile which slightly confused the guard, "I'm a newbie here, so show me around, will you, kind lad?" he continued with the friendliest voice he could muster.

"_There he goes again..." _Etsudo grinned.

"You're a recruit?! Well that's a nasty surprise, in fact, DOATEC has too many employees to need a new one... Wait! Let me check my record book. Hmm... I don't remember receiving another person in the workforce..." the giant flipped open a tiny book, but before he could even take a look at the first page, he looked up again so quickly as though he had just recovered his sanity, "Hey!!! You're not even wearing a unif..."

WHACK!!! His words were cut short when something hit him – hard – on the head. He blacked out and fell with a resounding thud. Kimura hung his nunchakus back on his waist and hurried through the door, "Ayane, finish him." He told the lavender-haired cohort with eyes narrowed revealing a serious expression. Ayane heaved the man up and when he was positioned with his back leaned against Ayane, she began to make her move. With her dagger in her right hand, she held out her free hand and held his chin up high...

The sound of a single, murderous slash at the man's throat echoed so menacingly in Etsudo's ears that it made him wince in fright. The body collapsed onto the concrete floor and blood gushed out of his neck like a burst pipe and its head rolled out of place. The corpse appeared ghostly-white in an instant, completely drained of blood. Etsudo just stood watching the horrendous scene with jaws wide open, amazed at how cold-blooded the sixteen-year-old truly was, and moreover, at how she did something even a male like himself would not dare to do.

Meanwhile, Kimura was carrying out his task in the security building. He caught sight of a patrolling guard and sprinted silently towards him. He brandished his dagger, gagged the man with his free hand and sent the blade deep into his scalp. The guard barely managed to let out a muffled scream and struggled in a panicked manner before he felt the cold embrace of death on him. Kimura entered an unlocked storeroom filled with cleaning materials, took out the guard's uniform and wore it on his body. After dumping the body in there, he exited and closed the door safely before venturing any further.

"_They have given the directions. Heh! This is too easy!" _Kimura pondered with glee as he followed the signboards, stopping now and then to make sure his disguise was well-maintained. He halted when he came across an imposing sign that directed to a spiral staircase, it said WATCHTOWER followed by a directional arrow pointing upward. The stocky warrior took a deep breath and advanced to his next step.

The stairway was dark, which was an advantage. When he arrived at the last few steps, he noticed a pair of legs belonging to a brigand on a lookout standing on the next level. His eyes traveled upwards to find a guard holding a pair of binoculars keeping a close watch over the rather busy horizon looming beneath him. Kimura landed his foot quietly on the sturdy platform and crouched low to prevent detection. With a quick move, he swept his leg across, tripping the guard. The brigand appeared wide-eyed when the ninja caught him before he touched the ground, but that feeling did not last long as he was brutally slashed at the throat, blood spilling all over the platform, colouring it crimson. Foe annihilated, the infiltrator was set upon the security control system. He scanned the area and spotted two distinct wires, one green and the other red. He sliced the green one with his blade and the whole port turned pitch black. Without the security lights, nothing would stand in their way.

Kimura looked down from the watchtower and spotted his two cohorts through squinted eyes, getting into action as soon as it got dark. He leapt out of the watchtower hurriedly when he heard footsteps approaching; he landed soundlessly and rushed to meet them.

"Good work, Kimura." Ayane complimented as she made for the ships that stopped by, "since they're loading cargo, we've enough time. Etsudo, you'll take the middle one, and you, the right."

"Yes, Ayane-sama" Etsudo replied while he ran.

"Why that sudden courtesy? I'm not a leader anyway. Even if I actually am, Hajinmon is dead."

"Not if we can help it." Ayane raised an eyebrow, "Genra-sama doesn't want Hajinmon dead, so do you." He replied in confidence. Ayane did not say anything else, only thinking about her foster father. By the time they reached the pier, they parted ways and sneaked into the ships, the darkness still on their side.


	9. Chapter 9: Fateful Encounter

Chapter 9: Fateful Encounter

Kekachi - I'm sorry for having to do this but I'm saving the excitement for the climax. All of your queries having already been answered in the later chapters long before you sent in the review. If you don't bother to read on that's okay. I've been having doubts on my story as well. Thanks for the comments anyway. I'll try to do better.

Wolf - Thanks for the comments. I realised you've pointed out some weak parts in my fic. I'll so my best to improve.

Note: I've put in scenes from the DOA3 opening movie in this chap, just doing it for fun. See if you can spot it. i've also noticed this chapter is a bit confusing, if it's that bad I'll change it. Otherwise, the story is coming closer to the climax! Please R&R

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Ayane crept in and hid behind the crew's cabin and listened closely. She could hear the footsteps of workers stationed at the ship but as she peeked at the deck, there was no one. The sounds were coming from the warehouse. With much hesitation, she darted towards the left side of the ship where the gigantic boxes of cargo were loaded, jumped on one of them and settled there. She sat down and leaned against a crate, facing the endless sea, as well as the ship where Etsudo was aboard.

She looked around, the ship was huge. Headlights shone over the area much like the ones at the port, a helicopter stood on a helipad at the far corner of the ship. This ship was exactly similar to the other two that sailed together. Technology within DOATEC has been vastly improving. Ayane squinted her eyes and focused on the dark figure moving stealthily on the shadows. The figure which she recognized as Etsudo slunk behind the pile of cargo like what Ayane had done. He seemed to have noticed Ayane too after he sat on a box. Ayane turned around and peeked through a small gap in between two boxes. There were a number of workers on board, which made up mostly of guards. She looked back at Etsudo, his black outfit hardly visible in the dark of night; he sat still and seemed to be asleep.

"_It'll be quite a while before we reach Hong Kong. Maybe I should take a rest," _she thought, _"Wait for me, father..."_

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"What's happening here?! Unit 04, respond!"

"Unit 07 reporting, sir. We've received reports of four guards murdered at the port, sir. Unit 12 is found leaning against the wall next to the entrance adjacent to the security building, but he's been stabbed in the chest, his thumb found missing. Unit 02 is down next to him, sir, but his head is missing. Unit 15 is found dead in the building's warehouse number 1, stabbed in the skull. And Unit 04, the one you've been searching for is down at the watchtower, slashed on the throat. Over and out"

"Unit 09 reporting, sir. It seems that the security systems have been shut down, sir. The green wire has been cut in the security control system. Traces of infiltrators that were suspected of breaking into the building have yet to be found. Over and out"

"Hmm... could it be those troublemakers again?"

"Unit 18 reporting, sir. Investigators have failed to acquire any traces of the infiltrators. Over and out"

"Then my guess is right! Blast those ninja! Damn.... I've had it with them! Okay... send ALL snipers to their whereabouts! Eradicate anybody within the location!"

"Yes, sir"

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"Did you hear that? They're coming!" Hayate muttered under his breath, "We've got to go!"

"Hayate, wait! Here, take this." Ryu handed him his strongbow and a quiver of normal arrows and explosive arrows, "I've got them two years ago, but they might be useful this time."

Hayate smiled at his best friend, "Alright... I'll do it. Come on, let's do this!" Hayate beckoned Ryu and Kasumi to follow him. They flipped and leapt out from the rooftop of the school. They made for the forest and the three took different directions, each of them hid on a tree.

Hayate stood on a branch, his eyes locked on three snipers that lurked below him. He aimed his arrow on one of them and struck; the soldier dropped his weapon and collapsed on the forest ground. His colleague turned abruptly, shocked to find him down so soon. He began to scan the place but not long, he became the next victim of an arrow. And again, the third one was down after the second. Hayate stared down at the man and reassured that he was dead before landing onto the ground. He looked up when his ears picked up the noise of propellers and found a helicopter. Light shone through the canopy of trees and Hayate was soon bathed in the light. Machine guns blazed but none of them reached him. He brandished an explosive arrow and aimed it at the vehicle. The arrow shot up and struck the helicopter, emanating an ear-piercing blast that echoed through the air.

Hayate stepped out of the midst and rejoined Kasumi and Ryu, only to find them standing in the middle of a bloody massacre. He faced Kasumi, who held a tear on her face. He went over and pressed her body against his, knowing the situation well, "I know it's hard for you to understand that it is a necessity of a ninja to kill those who interfere, but someday you'll overcome the guilt, Kasumi. Be brave like your sister." Kasumi wiped the tear and held her blood-stained tanto tightly in her hands. The three moved on to the port.

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Ayane woke up to the commotion nearby. She looked over to the next ship and spotted Etsudo sitting up too. He turned to his back and then turned to Ayane again. She looked surprised when she spotted him writing something on a small piece of paper, he hurriedly folded it and tied it to a kunai. He threw it and Ayane caught it. It read: Kimura spotted. What now?

She looked up again, only to realize that Etsudo had seemed to fall into the same fate as the previous victim. Not long after, she sensed a certain presence as she noticed a shadow looming over her. Without even seeing who it was, Ayane rolled out of the way, missing a bullet. She flipped over the attacker and covered his mouth with one hand. The guard tried in vain to call for help, but her hand strangled the cry in his throat. A metallic object flashing in the assassin's free hand was the last thing he ever saw. The next moment, he was dead.

Ayane let the lifeless body slide to the floor. She leaned over the corpse to retrieve the kunai she had embedded in the guard's brain; she turned and found herself surrounded yet by more guards. The memory of the massacre struck back mercilessly in her mind. Each time it flashed inside, it hurt her, it infuriated her. She stared at one of the guards that encircled her; she recalled her arduous training she spent with Etsudo and Kimura quite a while ago. She remembered what she learnt from the technique scroll she retrieved from the rubble, and she remembered it well. She focused a little longer, before she vanished in the blink of an eye. The brigands looked around in confusion and snapped back to their senses when she appeared before a guard, brandished a twin-bladed sword and slashed him several times without mercy. After the man dropped dead, the other guards looked as if they were seeing duplicates when numerous illusions of Ayane appeared before them. They opened fire. The whole scene was a mess of passing bullets and flipping, dodging hallucinations. But in the end, it all ended up in a blood bath. Only the captain remained, he could be seen hiding from a distance. Ayane's eyes turned cold.

"You... the lady tengu..." the captain stammered as he stared at Ayane. Blood trickled from a small wound, made by a bullet which grazed her left shoulder, down her arm and dripped from her fingers. He hastily made for the helicopter resting at the far end of the ship and started it. He took off and dropped a bomb. Ayane jumped and rolled out of the way before it landed and sent a loud explosion ringing in the night. She gripped her sword tightly in her hands and stood up from her crouching position. She looked toward the sea and saw yet another port. With the tournament in mind, she leapt from the ship.

Etsudo took a step back from the sight of the guards that surprised him a little. He readied his swords as his enemies took aim.

"Time to give a crack with these babies..." He unsheathed his sword and began charging, dodging bullets as he ran. He ran, dodged, flipped, slashed, and went at it again. He unsheathed another sword and sent more souls leaving for the next world as more guards filled in. he kicked one in the chest and stabbed him while he was down. He dodged a bullet that came from behind and turned to face three more soldiers, who seemed to be covering the captain. Etsudo brandished two more swords from his waist, and stuck one of them in his mouth. He bit the hilt tightly and dashed again. With two swords in his right hand, one in the left and one in his mouth, he struck the three of them at once with accurate precision. Before he could do anything next, he found himself facing a helicopter hovering above him. Etsudo quickly placed his swords back in their scabbards and jumped ship before he heard a resounding blast.

Ayane heaved in exhaustion when she lifted herself to land. She turned when she heard someone else arriving at the location; Etsudo lifted an eyebrow when he saw Ayane there. Kimura came next.

"A port... or a cemetery?" Kimura narrowed his eyes at the scene. The place resembled a nesting place for corpses but the buildings gave away the location's identity.

"True, this is the port. But it seems we're not alone." Etsudo turned serious when he detected a rather well-built man confronting a survivor of the ruckus. Ayane recognized him right away.

"Tell me! Where is Donovan?!" the man spoke in a demanding manner.

"Please... his location is secret, even we don't know where he..." his words were cut short when a gunshot sounded. The guard lay motionless on the ground.


End file.
